Enchenopa chocoandina, Rueda-Rodríguez & Montalvo-Salazar, 2024

Rueda-Rodríguez, María P. & Montalvo-Salazar, Jorge L., 2024, Two new species of the treehopper genus Enchenopa Amyot & Serville, 1843 (Hemiptera, Membracidae) from northwest Ecuador, ZooKeys 1216, pp. 43-62 : 43-62

Enchenopa chocoandina sp. nov.

Figs 5 , 6 , 7 , 8

Material examined.

Holotype: Ecuador • 1 ♂; Pichincha, Tandayapa Cloud Forest Station -0.009645, -78.688058, 2280 m of elevation; 3 Fbr. 2024; Rueda, M. P. leg.; Ex. Manual; ZSFQ -i18060 . Paratypes: Ecuador • 1 ♂; same data as for holotype; ZSFQ -i18061 • 3 ♀, 1 ♂; Pichincha, Tandayapa Cloud Forest Station -0.009645, -78.688058, 2280 m of elevation; 9 Fbr. 2024; López-García, M. M., Montalvo, J. & Rueda, M. P. leg.; Ex. Mercury light; ZSFQ -i10862 : 10865 • 1 ♀; Pichincha, Mindo , 0.04166, -78.77472, 1300 m of elevation; 11 Jun. 2022; Torres, D. leg.; Ex. Manual; ZSFQ -i8423 • 1 ♀, Imbabura, Seis de Julio de Cuellaje , 0.4509352, -78.525948, 2000 m of elevation; 13 Nov. 2021; Rubio, A. leg.; Ex. Manual; ZSFQ -i8196 .

Note on the type series.

Holotype and most paratypes are minuten-mounted. The paratype female ZSFQ -i8243 was originally pinned, but later the specimen was transferred to double mounting on a minuten pin. Dissected abdomens of holotype, one male paratype, and three female specimens placed in vials with glycerol pinned with specimens.

Diagnosis.

Overall coloration black with scarlet median carina and posterior apex in females and scarlet posterior apex in males, apical 1 / 3 of forewing amber; pronotal horn absent, replaced by obtuse projection directed obliquely forwards, lateral carina almost touching lateral margin of pronotum; three or four weak accessory carinae, some touching lateral carinae or bifurcate.

Description.

Male holotype ( ZSFQ -i10860 ): Measurements (mm): Length from head to wings: 5.3; Total length: 5.4; Head to apex of posterior process: 4.5; Pronotal length: 4.6; Head to horn apex: 1.5; Forewing length: 4.4; Body width: 2.2; Vertex width on ocellar line: 1.2; Head length: 1.2; Frontoclypeus length: 0.7; Frontoclypeus width: 0.1; Metathoracic tibia length: 0.9; Prothoracic tibia length: 1.8; Metathoracic tibia width: 0.3; Prothoracic tibia width: 0.2.

Color. Overall color black. Eyes brownish, ocelli golden. Posterior apex of pronotum scarlet red. Forewings almost entirely opaque black with an apical translucent amber patch restricted on the third to fifth apical cells and limbus around this area. Tarsi pale brownish.

Surface. Head, pronotum, ventral sclerites of thorax, legs, and abdomen with golden pubescence (Fig. 5 B ); sclerotized area of forewings with shorter pubescence. Pronotum (except by metopidium) and sclerotized area of forewings strongly punctured. Head, metopidium, legs, and abdomen rough.

Head. Triangular blunt, longer than wide (excluding eyes); distance between ocelli subequal to ocelli-eye distance; supra-antennal ledges arranged above clypeus; clypeus broad, longer than wide, anterior margin rounded; rostrum reaching posterior coxae (Fig. 5 A ).

Thorax. Pronotum, in lateral view, triangular; metopidium straight directed forwards; pronotal horn absent instead an obtuse projection with rounded apex; humeral angles slightly produced (Fig. 5 B ); median carina sharp; lateral carina parallel to median carina, running from apex of anterior projection to middle of the lateral margin of pronotum, almost touching the margin (Fig. 5 C ); three accessory carinae short (1 / 10 length of lateral carina), weak, irregular, sub-perpendicular to primary lateral carina, the last two diverging from the lateral carina (Fig. 5 D ), left side with the anterior two accessory carinae convergent; posterior apex of pronotum acuminate, just surpassing first apical cell. Forewing with one vein on clavus, two discoidal cells, two m-cu cross veins, one s cross veins which enclose second discoidal cell, and five apical cells; apical limbus broad. Anterior and middle tibiae foliaceous; posterior femur with apical ventral and middle cucullate setae, posterior tibia with spine-like cucullate setae on rows I and II, row III absent.

Abdomen. Sternum III with a transversal keel extended along the sternite, strongly projected downwards and medially invaginated. Tergites III to VI with a pair of medial tuberosities, tuberosities of tergite VI strongly developed (Fig. 6 D ). Subgenital plate, in lateral view, 3 × longer than wide, lobes diverging since the base, dorsal margin concave (Fig. 6 A ). Aedeagus with posterior arm lanceolate, 2 × longer than anterior arm and strongly inclined forwards; anterior face of posterior arm armed at apical 1 / 3 with small dorsal apical denticles, gonopore subapically (Fig. 6 C ). Styles distally recurved, apically truncate with anterior part longer than posterior part, spine tuft on dorsal margin just anterior to apex (Fig. 6 B ).

Female paratype ( ZSFQ -i8423 ): Similar to male except for the pronotal projection more angulated and produced, central carina reddish behind humeral angles and forewings with amber patch extended from the second to fifth apical cells and limbus around this area. Genitalia. Gonoplac ventrally setose and more sclerotized than dorsally (Fig. 6 E ). First valvula blade shaped, basal 2 / 3 broad, apex acuminate (Fig. 6 F ). Second valvulae blade shaped with two dorsal tubercles in apical 1 / 2 (Fig. 6 G, H ).

Nymph unknown.

Variation.

Measurements. Female / male (mm): Length from head to wings: 5.7–5.9 / 5.3–5.5; Total length: 5.9–6.4 / 5.4–5.7; Head to apex of posterior process: 5–5.6 / 4.3–4.5; Pronotal length: 4.9–5.5 / 4.5–4.6; Head to horn apex: 1.6–1.9 / 1.5–1.8; Forewing length: 5–5.4 / 4.4–4.8; Body width: 2.3–2.7 / 2.1–2.2; Vertex width on ocellar line: 1.2–1.4 / 1.1–1.2; Head length: 1.3–1.5 / 1.0–1.2; Frontoclypeus length: 0.7–0.9 / 0.7–0.8; Frontoclypeus width: 0.8–1.0 / 0.7–0.9; Metathoracic tibia length: 1–1.2 / 0.9–1.1; Prothoracic tibial length: 1.5–1.9 / 1.8–1.9; Metathoracic tibia width: 0.3–0.4 / 0.3–0.3; Prothoracic tibia width: 0.2–0.4 / 0.2–0.3.

Females are longer and have more produced pronotal projections than males (Fig. 7 A, C ), three or four accessory carinae (Fig. 7 D ), lateral carina behind humeral angles reddish rather than just the posterior apex of pronotum, and the amber membrane is most extended (Fig. 7 B ). Independent of gender, some accessory carinae are bifurcate or converged.

Distribution and natural history.

This species is distributed in the Montane forests of northwest Ecuadorian Andes (Fig. 9 ), between 1300 to 2300 m elevation. It inhabits the borders of secondary forests (Fig. 8 B ) and is a solitary species. The species has been recorded perched on the leaves or stems of different species of Asteraceae and Araceae , but more oftenly on Munnozia pinnatipartita (Hieron.) H. Rob. & Brettell ( Asteraceae ) (Fig. 8 A ), an endemic Ecuadorian species ( Barriga et al. 2011). The species has been observed active during the day and attracted to mercury light traps at night between 8 pm and 2 am (Fig. 8 C ).

Etymology.

The species, a noun in apposition, is named after the Andean Choco Biosphere Reserve declared by UNESCO as the seventh biosphere reserve of Ecuador, where this species lives. It honors the people who defend this territory from the metal mining that threatens the ecosystems and biodiversity of this important area.

Remarks.

Enchenopa chocoandina sp. nov. belongs to E. andina species group based on the pronotum with a horn or projection shorter than the distance between the humeral angles, the forewing with transparent patches, and the blade-shaped second valvulae. Moreover, some species of this group, such as E. pilosa and E. eurycephala , have dense pubescence, shared with E. chocoandina sp. nov.

Enchenopa chocoandina sp. nov. differs from Enchenopa loranthacina ( Sakakibara & Marques, 2010) by the obtuse projection obliquely directed forwards rather than a horizontally inclined horn and from E. pilosa Strümpel & Strümpel, 2014 and E. eurycephala Strümpel & Strümpel, 2014 by the head longer than wide instead of as long as wide or wider than long respectively. Enchenopa chocoandina sp. nov. has a reddish median pronotal carina and amber forewing patches which separate it from E. monoceros ( Germar, 1821) and E. luizae ( Lencioni-Neto & Sakakibara, 2015) which have the median carina concolorous and forewing patches hyaline. The new species resembles E. andina ( Schmidt, 1924) by the black overall coloration with median carina and posterior apex reddish, and the amber forewing apex; however, E. chocoandina sp. nov. does not have a horn instead an obtuse projection, longer and denser pubescence, and three or four weak and irregular accessory carinae instead of two or three. Moreover, the new species is considerably shorter than E. andina and differs in the male and female genitalia.

Enchenopa chocoandina sp. nov. lacks a distinctive horn; instead, it has an obtuse projection with a rounded apex, resembling species of the E. beebi species group or the males of E. minuta species group ( Strümpel and Strümpel 2014). However, E. chocoandina sp. nov. properly does not fit within the E. beebi species group due to the absence of large punctation on the upper portion of the pronotum and dorsum, a short translucent apical patch and yellow tarsi. Neither does it belong to the E. minuta species group due to the absence of sexual dimorphism in pronotal horn shape; in E. chocoandina both females and males lack a horn.

We suggest E. andina and E. chocoandina sp. nov. could be related species by the scarlet median carina and posterior apex only shared in both species. Both inhabit mountain forests of the north Andes of Ecuador however are geographically separated by the Interandean Valley.

Figures

Figure 5. Enchenopa chocoandina sp. nov. holotype male A – C habitus in frontal, dorsal view, and lateral views respectively D approach to base of horn in lateral view, the white arrows indicate the accessory carinae. Scale bars: 1 mm (A); 2 mm (B, C).

Figure 6. Abdomen and terminalia of Enchenopa chocoandina sp. nov. A undissected male pygofer in lateral view B styles in dorsal view C aedeagus in lateral view D undissected female abdomen in lateral view E gonoplac in lateral view F first valvula in lateral view G second valvula in lateral view H close-up apex of second valvula. Scale bars: 0.1 (A, H); 0.05 (B, C); 1 mm (D); 0.2 mm (E – G).

Figure 7. Enchenopa chocoandina sp. nov. paratype female A – C habitus in frontal, dorsal view, and lateral views respectively D approach to base of horn in lateral view, the white arrows indicate the accessory carinae. Scale bars: 1 mm (A); 2 mm (B, C).

Figure 8. Enchenopa chocoandina sp. nov. in its natural environment and habitat A paratype female from Mindo by David Torres B border of a secondary forest at Tandayapa Cloud Forest Station C female paratype attracted by a light trap.

Figure 9. Distribution of the new species in Ecuador. Red stars = records of Enchenopa gennyae sp. nov.; blue stars = records of Enchenopa chocoandina sp. nov.